Price of Thanksgiving dinner up 13%, biggest jump in two decades
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Diners might not be in a thankful mood as they sit down in a few days to a Thanksgiving dinner that cost 13% more than it did last year.
The price of a classic holiday meal for 10 people will hit $49.20, jumping from $43.47 in 2010, the American Farm Bureau Federation said Thursday. That’s the highest increase since 1990, as the cost of sweet potatoes, rolls, stuffing and even whipped cream spiked this year.
Bad weather, rising commodity prices and other factors have caused a run-up in food and beverage prices over the last few months.
On Nov. 24, a 30-ounce can of pumpkin pie mix will cost 16% more than it did last year, the farm group said. A pound of frozen green peas will be 17% more expensive, while a the cost of a gallon of whole milk will jump 13%.
But the biggest increase will be the turkey -– a 16-pound bird is expected to run about $21.57, or 22% more than in 2010. Economists with the farm group pegged the leap to strong demand in the U.S. and abroad.
‘Retailers are being more aggressive about passing on higher costs for shipping, processing and storing food to consumers,’ John Anderson, a senior economist with the group, said in a statement.
The report, which the federation says is ‘an informal gauge of price trends around the nation,’ is the latest in a series that began in 1986. Back then, a Thanksgiving meal cost $28.74.
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-- Tiffany Hsu
Twitter.com/tiffhsulatimes
Photo credit Credit: Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times
